Sirish Subash named America’s Top Young Scientist 

Sirish Subash, a 14-year-old Indian American student has won the 2024 3M Young Scientist Challenge, the nation’s premier middle school science competition.

Subash,   a 9th grader at Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology in Snellville, Georgia, set himself apart with an AI handheld pesticide detector. As the grand prize winner, he received a $25,000 cash prize and the prestigious title of “America’s Top Young Scientist,” 3M and Discovery Education announced.

Subash’s project, Pestiscand, is a handheld device designed to detect pesticide residues on produce using a non-destructive method. It employs spectrophotometry, which involves measuring how light of various wavelengths is reflected off the surface of fruits and vegetables.

READ: 6 Indian Americans among 3M Young Scientist Challenge finalists (July 19, 2023)

A machine learning model then analyzes this data to determine the presence of pesticides. Pestiscand consists of a sensor, a power supply, a display screen, and a processor. During testing, the device achieved an accuracy rate of identifying pesticide residues on spinach and tomatoes of greater than 85%, meeting the project’s objectives for effectiveness and speed.

Subash spent the last four months competing against nine other finalists and secured his win during final Challenge events at 3M global headquarters in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Oct 14 and 15.

In his presentation, Subash used data from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that said 70.6% of produce items contain pesticide residues.  The lingering residues can lead to certain health problems like brain cancer, leukemia, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’sDisease, Subash said.

“My project is called PestiSCAND. What it is, is the device that allows everybody to check for pesticide residues on their produce at home,” Subash told USA Today. “The pesticide residues are a contaminant that’s commonly found on produce items.”

“The residues can stay on produce after washing, and that’s where they’ve been connected to a variety of health issues,” he said. “If we could detect them, we could avoid consuming them. We could reduce the risk of those health issues.”

This year’s Young Scientist Challenge finalists have demonstrated an incredible ability to develop creative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges,” said Torie Clarke, EVP & chief public affairs officer at 3M.

“I am beyond impressed and inspired bytheir intelligence and their scientific minds. Congratulations to this year’s Top Young Scientist, Sirish Subash, and all the finalists for their phenomenal work.”

3M Young Scientist Challenge finalists are paired with a 3M scientist who mentors and works with them one-on-one over the summer to transform their idea from concept to prototype. This year’s winner was paired with Aditya Banerji, Senior Research Engineer of 3M’s Corporate Research Process Laboratory.

READ: Indian American Gitanjali Rao is the winner of 2017 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge (October 19, 2017)

Four other Indian American kids were among fourth through tenth place winners. They each receive a $1,000 prize and a $500 gift card.

They are: Ankan Das from Sanford, Florida, a 9th grader at Oviedo High School in the Seminole County School District;

Aakash Manaswi from Orlando, Florida, a 9th grader at Lake Highland Preparatory School;

Ronita Shukla from Acton, Massachusetts, an 8th grader at RJ Grey Junior High School in the Acton Boxborough Regional School District;

Rithvik Suren from Ellington, Connecticut, a 9th grader at Academy of Aerospace & Engineering in the CREC School District.